# GOT THE OK FOR A MAN CAVE!!!!!!, now with the questions



## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

ok so were buying a new place and i have the ok to turn the entire basement into a man cave!!!!eace::dude::dude: . im talkin tv's, pool table, bar, the works. so on to the questions. 

1. how should i ventilate it so it will get the smoke out but not fill the upstairs with smoke?

2. is there any way i can keep the smoke smell to a minimum?


im really lookin for the chyeapest, most efficient way to do this 

any info would be awesome. thanks guys!!


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## Mr_mich (Sep 2, 2010)

be carefull of vents and heating ducts, they can cary the smoke up to the rest of the house.


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

i was thinkin that. im thinkin i can take the vent covers off an put little flaps on them so they open when the air is on


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## Stubby (Dec 6, 2010)

You will need to have a smoking room that is isolated from your HVAC. Use a baseboard heater in this room for heat in the winter time. Before finishing the room, use Great Stuff expanding foam insulation to fill any air gaps that will go to the main level.

To ventilate you can put a dryer vent through the wall and hook a nice quiet bathroom exhaust fan to it. This would be your simple solution.

If you are interested in turning the whole basement into a smoking room, you'll need to install a decent filter on your your cold air return to stop the smoke from going upstairs. There are are slide in type to take care of that. 

I'd still use a system of bathroom fans to vent the basement. 

Make a small landing area at the bottom of your stairs that has a door into your smoking room that is weather stripped to eliminate smoke there.

As mentioned before, use Great Stuff foam to fill any gaps that will allow smoke up.


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## MoreBeer (Feb 13, 2010)

My advice.....isolate a small room from the rest of the basement for smoking cigars. Put in an exhaust to the outside in addition to a smoke eater and do a nice job of sealing up the room.

*It'll be almost impossible to keep cigar smoke odor from entering the house if you smoke throughout the entire basement regardless of ventilation methods.*

I know this from past experience.


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## Batista30 (Sep 13, 2010)

Can't really contribute to the thread, except you must be feeling very awesome and excited about the whole idea right now. Congrats!


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

yea its awesome. the seller is giving us like 6k back at closing and the wife said this could be a project we could do. she actually brought it up!!!!!!!!!


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## MoreBeer (Feb 13, 2010)

Oh yeah, almost forgot. Be prepared for a shitload of work, a ton of things to go wrong, and pay close attention to your tape measure and level. Measure...Measure...and then Measure again!

Also get yourself a nice laser level/plumb for projecting accurate lines on the walls and floors. Wish they made those years ago when I did my first 2 basements.


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## Oldmso54 (Jul 31, 2010)

First - congrats on getting a new man cave. 2nd - gotta agree with "MoreBeer" on the smoke issue. I don't have a basement but I can't even keep the smoke smell from going inside the house on occasion from my outdoor screened patio! And I can tell you first hand "Mamma don't like that". So yeah - I'd isolate a smoking space, vent outside and insulate the hell out of that particular space - door stops, the works.


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

MoreBeer said:


> Oh yeah, almost forgot. Be prepared for a shitload of work, a ton of things to go wrong, and pay close attention to your tape measure and level. Measure...Measure...and then Measure again!
> 
> Also get yourself a nice laser level/plumb for projecting accurate lines on the walls and floors. Wish they made those years ago when I did my first 2 basements.


i think my dad has most of that stuff, and i know all about being carful. im a custom fab welder and most of the time i have less than a milimeter tolerance and angles are like .5 degrees. i have to constantly measure,


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## MoreBeer (Feb 13, 2010)

perry7762 said:


> i think my dad has most of that stuff, and i know all about being carful. im a custom fab welder and most of the time i have less than a milimeter tolerance and angles are like .5 degrees. i have to constantly measure,


The more fancy tools you have, the better!

Look into using metal studs as opposed to wood. They're light, cheap, easy to work with and best or all....*absolutely straight!* They're EXCELLENT for basements. I highly recommend it.


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## Stubby (Dec 6, 2010)

perry7762 said:


> i think my dad has most of that stuff, and i know all about being carful. im a custom fab welder and most of the time i have less than a milimeter tolerance and angles are like .5 degrees. i have to constantly measure,


2x4's and Drywall are fairly forgiving, so you won't be getting out calipers and micrometers here.

If you have any design, general construction, or finishing questions feel free to ask. I built a home theater man cave, unfortunately its not a smoking room.


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## Mr. Slick (Aug 17, 2010)

perry7762 said:


> i was thinkin that. im thinkin i can take the vent covers off an put little flaps on them so they open when the air is on


That's a damn good idea.

The flaps + some bathroom "fart fans" should get you going.

The isolated smoking area would be best for not letting smoke upstairs. But, it woldn't work for me. I don't think I could stand sitting in an isolated area for an hour to smoke when there is a pool table & bar in the next room. It's just my oppinion but I would need to have the run of the whole man cave with my cigar.

Except for the fact that smoke gets sucked in to air vents when the a/c isn't running I don't have any experience with basement smoking rooms. My man cave/smoking room is one of those room-over-the-garage rooms upstairs with it's own hvac. The room can be smoked out and you won't smell a thing til you get about 3/4 of the way up the stairs.


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## canadianbeaver (Jan 15, 2011)

Not a man but I was telling someone on another thread, we smoke in my home and when we are done we Fabreeze bomb the room and it works great! So even if you have fans etc, get lots of this stuff from Costco and before you leave for the night spray down the room and you will have a happy cave.

UG.


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## Stubby (Dec 6, 2010)

Don't leave cigar butts in an open ashtray in the cave either.


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## gibson_es (Jan 23, 2010)

congrats, i will be keeping an eye on this. cant wait to see what you come up with.


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## woodted (Jan 3, 2009)

If your state went non-smoking talk to some of the owners of local bars to see if you can score smoke eater as they will no longer need it. I got mine for free from an establishment that I have frequented!


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## MoreBeer (Feb 13, 2010)

The easiest and cheap way to get the "bulk" of your smoke out is to simply buy two in-line 6" or 8" duct fans ($20 each) and have them back-to-back near the exhaust vent to the outside. Then run duct to a couple of vents in the ceiling.

Set up your smoking chair's, sofa, whatever near those ducts. This will get rid of about 80% of the smoke or more. Now install a ceiling mounted smoke eater. (The floor models don't work as well). It will remove the remaining smoke and scrub the air of contaminants. This system works well and was what I used in my old house. I'm installing the identical system in the cigar room now under construction at my new basement. Its big for a cigar room, about 14x19 but my last one was too small and I felt confined in there.

The smoke eater will run you a few bucks but its worth it.


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## lukesparksoff (Apr 21, 2010)

I did my man cave 3yrs ago, full custom wet bar,kegerator,cabinet humidor,custom poker table ,2 LCD,full bath with 5 jet shower,theater chairs. should have put a fireplace in.


Cigar smoke 

1 3 ceiling exhaust fan ,1 over the bar,1 over poker table,1 in the bath room
2 1 Alen air cleaner, works great (filters are very high but they last for 
6m) when I look up at the canlights the air is always clean
3 1 Csonka Smoker Cloaker Air Purifier - Super Size (Cigar gas is what everyone hates,this thing works great ,the day after a poker game there is no trace of cigar gas
4 weather strips for the doors
5 smoke filter over the return vent

I hope this helps good luck with the Cave


if I have alot of smokers over ,I close the heating vents


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## gibson_es (Jan 23, 2010)

i have heard many great and amazing things about the lampe burger. there $60-$100 at my local PIPE shop, im sure there cheaper online, good for cigar or pipe smoke, i plan on getting one when i move. i suggest at least doing some online research on them.


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## DylTheThrill (May 20, 2010)

Congrats! I can't wait to see what you decide. I hope you update as I am wanting to do something similar in the future. :dude:


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## taxedman (Dec 10, 2010)

I'm with those that suggest an isolated room (cigar lounge sounds better!). This will be ultimately cheaper when it comes to controlling and getting rid of smoke/odour. It's great you have a clean slate to start. I smoke in my office (about 12' x 12') which is downstairs in my split level. This gives me a full size sliding window that I put a portable exhaust fan in, which I run for at least a 1/2 hour after I finish smoking. I don't have any problems with smoke getting past the door, I assume since the fan creates a current that pulls air into the room from under the door. Have not detected any odour upstairs entering furnace ducts, there are two ceiling mounted vents in this room. I burn a scented candle while I smoke and have the small Csonka ioniser mounted on the wall at about 7' up which if I run on low overnight, does a great job of stripping out the residual odours. It is a bit of a hassle, but just a wintertime activity for me...I don't enjoy smoking in sub-zero temps. Rather be on my deck or the golf course.


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## canadianbeaver (Jan 15, 2011)

taxedman said:


> I'm with those that suggest an isolated room (cigar lounge sounds better!). This will be ultimately cheaper when it comes to controlling and getting rid of smoke/odour. It's great you have a clean slate to start. I smoke in my office (about 12' x 12') which is downstairs in my split level. This gives me a full size sliding window that I put a portable exhaust fan in, which I run for at least a 1/2 hour after I finish smoking. I don't have any problems with smoke getting past the door, I assume since the fan creates a current that pulls air into the room from under the door. Have not detected any odour upstairs entering furnace ducts, there are two ceiling mounted vents in this room. I burn a scented candle while I smoke and have the small Csonka ioniser mounted on the wall at about 7' up which if I run on low overnight, does a great job of stripping out the residual odours. It is a bit of a hassle, but just a wintertime activity for me...I don't enjoy smoking in sub-zero temps. Rather be on my deck or the golf course.


This sounds so great... one element I would pay particular attention to if this was for Matthew and me would be music... and small speakers these days can be so fantastic!


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## jswaykos (Oct 26, 2010)

Since you're buying a house anyway, just buy one in San Diego. It's currently 70 degrees here.


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## taxedman (Dec 10, 2010)

canadianbeaver said:


> This sounds so great... one element I would pay particular attention to if this was for Matthew and me would be music... and small speakers these days can be so fantastic!


Fortunately, I have the entertainment requirements covered as I've been using this room as a office for 15 yrs. The retro-fit to a smoking room is a more recent project. I should have mentioned I also do the fabreeze bomb as well, on the carpet, however that is likely the next thing to get changed out in favor a laminate or something similar.


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## Athion (Jul 17, 2010)

I'll toss in a "yep" to the Lampe Berger idea. I got my wife one for Christmas (I didnt tell her till after she oohed and Aahhed over it that I bought it at a cigar shop). Actually the one I got her was a "La Tee Da" ... same exact thing as the Lampe Berger, but cheaper and made in Texas  These things are called "Oil Effusion Lamps".

Here's just a random picture of one I found on the web









They are pretty good at eating smoke, and they smell pretty good  Bonus for buying one for the wife/GF etc, is they look nice too


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## mrmikey32 (Dec 7, 2010)

I will post more helpful info soon. I rehab houses sometimes and im an electrician

but for smoke

Air cleaner/smoke eater

not mine


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## Bad Finger (Jan 5, 2011)

Might I also suggest a centerfugal fan and carbon filter combo.


Figure out your square footage, and then check them online. They do wonders.


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## gibson_es (Jan 23, 2010)

Athion said:


> I'll toss in a "yep" to the Lampe Berger idea. I got my wife one for Christmas (I didnt tell her till after she oohed and Aahhed over it that I bought it at a cigar shop). Actually the one I got her was a "La Tee Da" ... same exact thing as the Lampe Berger, but cheaper and made in Texas  These things are called "Oil Effusion Lamps".
> 
> Here's just a random picture of one I found on the web
> 
> ...


can you give more detail as to how well they work? maybe i will look into these before buying the lamp burger..... depends on how much cheaper they are....


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## Athion (Jul 17, 2010)

gibson_es said:


> can you give more detail as to how well they work? maybe i will look into these before buying the lamp burger..... depends on how much cheaper they are....


I paid $50 for ours and then something like $15 for a bottle of oil (the oil is obviously all the same, so you can buy whatever). They are identical to the LB, as they are (essentially) the same thing. I cant speak to how long it will last or whatever, but its not like it has moving parts... now my wife is a scent freak, and she runs ours a LOT (She smokes cigs in the house)... so she has already gone through a bottle.. but a normal person would probably get a couple of months or so out of a bottle of oil.

When we light ours, you can sit across the room from me and you cannot smell my cigar. (and its not a large room). A lot of B&Ms use these lamps (LB and LTD) so you could probably see one in action at your local.

For the money, you cant beat em


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## gibson_es (Jan 23, 2010)

non of my shops have then exept my local pipe shop, and they dont use any of them, i believe i will shop around and see what i can get a good deal on, this is on my list of shit to get in feb..... as i will have den/man cave/room im my soon to be house to smoke in, but dont have the means to run all the fancy stuff to remove the smoke. just a window and a door and a fan. lol.


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

awesome ideas guys. and yes i will keep this updated. im closing next friday and the work will probably begin on saturday!!!!! im thinkin im just gonna go with a smoke eater and a exhaust fan and door seals etc... but im finding the smoke eaters cheaper than i thought they would be


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## rocketmann82 (Jun 20, 2010)

canadianbeaver said:


> Not a man but I was telling someone on another thread, we smoke in my home and when we are done we Fabreeze bomb the room and it works great! So even if you have fans etc, get lots of this stuff from Costco and before you leave for the night spray down the room and you will have a happy cave.
> 
> UG.


Does the Fabfreeze really work? I know it's good on small oders but wasn't sure about a room full of Cigar smoke. Thanks, I will have to try this!!!!!


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## gibson_es (Jan 23, 2010)

man's law #365

febreeze>cologne>washing machine


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## jswaykos (Oct 26, 2010)

Just smoke upstairs, too! Problem solved, marriage ruined.


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## Johnny Rock (Jun 25, 2010)

Just remember that if you exhaust air from a space for smoke removal you will need to make up that air from some other source. If there is not "Make Up" air to dilute the exhaust air, the exhaust fans will not work very well unless the windows and doors are not sealed well and you have air infiltration from the exterior, or if you keep a window open. The best way to do this is to introduce make up air through a vent to the exterior that is regulated by a weighted (barometric) damper that would be normally closed when the exhaust fan is not on. Most bathroom exhaust fans are only rated at 50 cubic feet per minute, and based on a full basement size, ~ 1000-1500 sq. ft X 8 ft. ceiling height you're looking at 8000-12000 cubic feet to exhaust. Just some thoughts to ponder...


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## Seminole (Apr 9, 2010)

Look into the RabbitAir GS for air purification/filtering. The wife got me one for Christmas and it works great. After a day or 2, you can't tell I smoked in the basement at all. While you are smoking, it sucks the smoke right out of the air immediately, even when multiple people are smoking. The smell hangs around for a day or so, but with some of those oil scents or febreze, no hint of cigar at all after 2 days. Not exactly cheap, but cheaper than completely isolating the room and running special ducting from the rest of the house. You can get one for around $400, worth every penny. Also, as someone else said, smoke will get through the vents in the basement and spread through the house unless it is on an isolated system. Easy fix, close the vents. I will close mine before smoking, and open them back up the next day, no issue with the smell getting around the house.


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

8" Inch 675 CFM Inline Fan Hydroponic Exhaust Duct Fan - eBay (item 270595267683 end time Feb-12-11 12:53:33 PST)

670 cfm do yo think i would need to close the vents off still? i was thinkin that if i had that on while i was smoking it would actually benefit to have the vents open to pull air from the upstairs and what not and i would just exhaust the smoke out of the house. what do you think?


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

jswaykos said:


> Since you're buying a house anyway, just buy one in San Diego. It's currently 70 degrees here.


sorry, cant blow shit up in my back yard in san diego. probably wouldnt go over to well


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## gjcab09 (Jul 12, 2009)

Man...what a wealth of info in this thread!


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## smelvis (Sep 7, 2009)

James
I have been reading and you Sir are a lucky man, I watch this thread with interest as we are all learning here.

Now get to work 

Dave


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

im gettin there, i got all the appliances hooked up today. just have to do some plumbing for the dryer and the dishwasher. actually running a gas line outside under the deck so i can hook it up to the grill. NO MORE 20 LB TANKS!!!!!!! but back to the man cave, im lookin at doing a rounded corner bar and puttin in that fan and then getting an air purifier, then i get to put a pool table down and were in business!!!
i will take some pics tomorrow and post them up


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

ok so i forgot to take pics. but so far i got a pool table and this bad boy 6" Inch 530 CFM Inline Fan Hydroponic Exhaust Duct Fan - eBay (item 270595267135 end time Feb-12-11 12:51:59 PST)

now i just gotta get it all figured out where im gonna run the vents and stuff!!


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## Batista30 (Sep 13, 2010)

Very cool James. Keep us updated! I think we're all living our dreams through you right now!


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

its takin a little longer than i was hopin. i hit some snags with the closing date and had some plumming issues. hopefully everything will be set for the end of the month


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## ouirknotamuzd (Jan 29, 2011)

perry7762 said:


> ok so were buying a new place and i have the ok to turn the entire basement into a man cave!!!!eace::dude::dude: . im talkin tv's, pool table, bar, the works. so on to the questions.
> 
> 1. how should i ventilate it so it will get the smoke out but not fill the upstairs with smoke?
> 
> ...




*One word,Dude......Hepafilter

now I have a question....when are we all invited over?....I make a mean martini:martini::drinking:
*


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

yall can come over whenever you want. not big on martinis but if you bring a bottle of sothern comfort i can pretty much gaurentee that i wont stop drinkin till its gone!!!!!!


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

ok so i finally got furniture and internet so heres the new man cave!!!!

heres my tv room










heres my little smoking lounge










heres my pool table










and heres the fan i put in. its a 6 inch 570 cfm inline fan. in a day i cant even tell i smoked in the basement!!!!


















enjoy!!


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## cubanrob19 (Jun 15, 2010)

Thats awesome James! Congrats!

could you give me some info on the exhaust fan you used? Im slowly working on my own cigar room and have been looking for a good exhaust fan. I will probably be using 2, one on each side of the room.


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## Frankenstein (Jan 12, 2011)

Very Nice.... makes me wish I had a basement. Enjoy!


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## Kypt (Mar 17, 2011)

Nice. Needs some pictures. Manly pictures...and at least one gun hanging on the wall. :smoke2:


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## louistogie (Jun 21, 2007)

Try to get another leather or fake leather couch. They start to stick after awhile. And they hold the smell in your room. I change mine now my cave doesn't stick at all any more.


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## Johnny Rock (Jun 25, 2010)

Sweet, looking good!!! :ss


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## perry7762 (Jul 27, 2010)

cubanrob19 said:


> Thats awesome James! Congrats!
> 
> could you give me some info on the exhaust fan you used? Im slowly working on my own cigar room and have been looking for a good exhaust fan. I will probably be using 2, one on each side of the room.


6" Inch 530 CFM Inline Fan Hydroponic Exhaust Duct Fan - eBay (item 270595267135 end time Apr-13-11 13:51:59 PDT)

i was going to do the 8 inch but it was just too freakin big this one seems to do the job, i might add another somewhere down the road



Kypt said:


> Nice. Needs some pictures. Manly pictures...and at least one gun hanging on the wall. :smoke2:


 i got the hunting room upstairs!! and yes im starting too look for lighted beer signs. and i need a pool table light. that shit gets expensive real quick though


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